A vending machine mentality

I can’t recall what year it was, but I was in downtown Chicago at the Union Station train depot. I saw a vending machine (not an unusual sight by any means!) but THIS vending machine was selling GOLD Bullion. Wish I could remember the year because then I could better relate the economic environment then versus now.

What does a vending machine offer? Convenience, access, impulse buying, anonymity, all are appropriate reasons for using one. Well, anonymity is a “relative” term because I don’t think the machine accepted cash, the buyer needed to use a credit card. Mmm, I wonder if the vending machine had a coin return?

OK, so I’m just playing a little with my mind and maybe yours! Actually it’s our psyche that’s being played with. After all, our society has “grown up” with vending machines; we may even, once in a while, look for a vending machine. They were sure big in the day of 75-cent packs of cigarettes. Thank heavens I was a social not-really-a-smoker person in those days, I was just trying to fit in our crowd. Now, back to gold…

What does it say about a society that buys gold bullion from a vending machine??? What does it says about gold that it is sold from a vending machine? Gold is a commodity just like crude oil or corn or wheat. However, at times, gold is considered a “scarce” resource. There are the “gold bug” investors who believe in holding the bullion physically in a vault or perhaps buy gold mining stocks. There are other investors with a different opinion on investing in gold.

According to bankrate.com, “Traditionally, investing in gold has been used as a hedge against inflation.”
Read more: http://www.bankrate.com/finance/investing/pros-cons-investing-gold-1.aspx#ixzz3ry7ehyv3.

This is a quote from CNBC’s Quarterly Investment Guide: “The biggest knock against gold is that it is a nonproductive asset: There’s no productivity underlying its value, which is set by perceptions of its relative safety.”  http://www.cnbc.com/2014/07/23/best-ways-to-invest-in-gold-now.html

Here’s a short pro and con article from the British newspaper The Telegraph: “We explain the options for those who want to buy gold – and weigh up the pros and cons.” http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/investing/gold/11686847/How-to-invest-in-gold.html

Actually, I don’t invest in gold, I can’t afford to!!! Ha, isn’t that a “rich” comment upon which to end a blog. However, I am ‘invested” in black gold, i.e. oil. I guess I believe in the continuity of the automobile running on gasoline for a few more years vs. Tiffany selling gold watches to the “masses.”
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Sandwich